The Dinner. 29 
was personally acquainted with the inspectors of monuments in 
France and Germany, and in both those countries they would find 
the same difficulties arising from want.of funds. In both these 
countries they refused to take money out of the treasury for arche- 
ological purposes, on the ground that it was not just to take money 
out of the public funds for any such object. Some years ago while 
in Germany he came upon a very fine old Church that was about to 
be sold for the value of the materials. He wrote to the inspector 
of monuments about it, and in his reply he said he had had his eye 
upon it, but that he could do nothing as he had not been able to get 
a penny towards purchasing the materials. He asked him (Mr. 
Parker) to write to the King of Prussia on the subject, but as he 
did not know the King he could not see his way to write to him, 
but knowing that the Princess Imperial was Princess Victoria of 
England, he ventured to write to her upon the subject. The answer 
was to the effect, “ I have spoken to the King, he has spoken to the 
minister, the money is paid, and the Church is saved.” He was 
afraid they would never get the House of Commons to grant money 
for any such purposes. The work must be done by individuals, and 
without funds no work could be done. They wanted such an office 
as that which Sir John Lubbock had proposed in his bill—an office 
where ancient properties should be registered as national property, 
and placed under the charge of officers in the districts in which they 
were situated, and he sincerely hoped that the Secretaries of the 
Wiltshire Society would not be left without funds. 
Mr. Stevens, in responding, expressed approval of what Mr. 
Talbot had stated, and said that they wished to knock down any 
barrier which might exist between North and South in that as in 
all other things. He thought that, putting himself as Secretary 
out of view altogether, they had done a wise thing in appointing a 
Secretary for South Wilts, because in doing so they had done some- 
thing that would tend to break down the barrier which had been 
referred to, and he hoped both ends of the county would be can- 
vassed, so that the best men should be chosen for conducting the 
affairs of the Society. 
The Cuatrman said he did not take quite so gloomy a view of the 
